A magazine is an ammunition storage and feeding device used with a firearm. The magazine holds ammunition cartridges and feeds them automatically into the chamber of the firearm (e.g., handgun, rifle, or shotgun). Most magazines are configured to be easily inserted into and removed from the firearm. A smaller number of magazines are formed as an integral part of the firearm. In general, removable magazines are favored over integral magazines because removable magazines allow the user to replace an empty magazine quicker and easier. Conventional magazines can have any of a number of configurations such as, for example, tubular magazines, box magazines, drum magazines, rotary magazines, pan magazines, and helical magazines.
Unfortunately conventional magazines can suffer from any of a number of problems. One problem is that the design of many conventional magazines allows the cartridges to move forward inside the magazine until the bullet impacts the front of the magazine. Every time the firearm is fired, the recoil causes the magazine to move backwards quickly with the firearm. Since the cartridges are not secured in place, the cartridges move forward longitudinally in the magazine until the bullets impact the front of the magazine. This can deform and/or otherwise damage the bullets, which may alter the bullets' flight properties and consequently the bullets' accuracy. In some larger caliber firearms, the force of the bullet impacting the front of the magazine may be great enough to push or seat the bullet further into the cartridge case. When such a cartridge is chambered, the bullet is no longer in the optimum position relative to the barrel to provide the greatest accuracy. For the greatest accuracy, the bullet should be seated in the cartridge case so that when it is chambered the bullet just barely touches or is just slightly spaced apart from the rifling in the barrel.
Another problem with conventional magazines is that they are often large and cumbersome. This may make them more difficult to carry and use as well as potentially being more costly to manufacture. Conventional magazines may also suffer from problems associated with loading the firearm due to the cartridge exiting the magazine at a position that is not directly below the bore. In such a situation, the firearm must be configured to further manipulate the cartridge sideways to get it into the chamber (e.g., the firearm may include a ramp that the bullet slides up to simultaneously lift the cartridge and move it sideways).
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved ammunition magazine to hold and feed ammunition cartridges into a firearm. In particular, it would be desirable to provide an ammunition magazine that prevents the bullets of the cartridges from being damaged while in the magazine and that is also compact and reliable.